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Didn't Read the Most Important Climate Report in Six Years? This Video Has You Covered

Because sometimes, text only goes so far.

Back at the tail end of September, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its fifth annual report on the current state and the bleak potential future that stands before us as a result of—you guessed it—climate change.

Though you may have seen the headlines on various news outlets and blogs, chances are you didn’t actually read the report first hand. That’s understandable—the introduction alone is 64 (dense) pages. The section on long-term climate change stretches up to 177. But as intimidating as the document itself might be, the IPCC’s findings are valuable. If you have shied away from them thus far, Climate Change — The state of the science by WelcomeAnthropocene may help put it all into perspective.

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By translating some of the IPCC’s major conclusions into a glossy video visualization, it helps those more visually-inclined learners—or just anyone who enjoys a well-made clip—get a grasp on exactly what sorts of threats our planet might be facing as a result of anthropogenic activities. Sometimes, text only goes so far.

As the video fast-forwards us through time, it illustrates the possible future of our little blue marble as it spins in space: warming temperatures, shrinking sea ice, increasing sea levels, amplifying ocean acidity. It’s as grim as it is beautiful, but all is not necessarily lost yet.

Whether you see it as a disheartening or hopeful proposition, the final takeaway is this: “The scale of change depends on decisions made now… It is up to societies now to decide the future we want.”

Thumbnail image via John LeGear on Flickr.

@heyiamlex